Columbia Public School district posts form to apply for Lee Elementary renaming committee

The Columbia Public School’s Board of Education voted to create a renaming committee for Robert E. Lee Elementary on Sept. 11.

After figuring out the what the next steps were for the board to take and what members of the community should be on the board, the administration posted a form for member submissions on the district’s homepage Tuesday.

According to the submission form, the deadline to submit for committee participation is Oct. 13.

Members of the community can apply to be on the committee, but only 10 people will be chosen.

Altogether, 13 people will make up the committee, and two members have already been chosen, but as non-voters.

Dr. Jill Brown, assistant superintendent for elementary education, and Carla London, chief equity officer, will be the district administrators serving as non-voter co-chairs.

Another member of the committee meeting will be a board member from Lee Elementary.

The following is a description for the other positions on the committee:

One parent of a student at Lee Elementary, not on the school board. One Lee Partner in Education; partners may submit names to the district administration, and a drawing will be held. One staff member at Lee Elementary, not on the school board. Faculty and staff may submit their name to the district, and a drawing will be held. One former student of Lee Elementary; must be high school age or older. Four people in the community; not affiliated with Lee Elementary who live in school district’s boundaries, and one person from each of the four quadrants of the city. Two “at-large” community members, meaning anyone residing within the school district’s boundaries.

The drawing for committee members will be held Oct. 16, and the chosen members will be presented to the board of education on Oct. 19 for approval.

The form also states that people may only submit their name once. If submitted more than once, the person will be disqualified.

Once the committee is finalized, members will not be able to submit their own ideas for a new school name.

The timeline for name submissions will be decided by the naming committee.

To apply to participate on the naming committee, click here.